Early life

McCrae was born in Leith

Leith

-South Leith v. North Leith:Up until the late 16th century Leith , comprised two separate towns on either side of the river....

, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

; his father was Andrew Murison McCrae, a writer; his mother was Georgiana McCrae

Georgiana McCrae

Georgiana Gordon McCrae was an Australian painter and diarist.-Early life and family background:Born in London, she was the illegitimate daughter of George Gordon, 5th Duke of Gordon and Jane Graham. The Marquis of Huntly played little part in her life, as far as can be deduced from Gordon's memoirs...

, a painter. George attended a preparatory school in London, and later received lessons from his mother. Georgiana and her four sons emigrated to Melbourne

Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

 in 1841 following her husband who emigrated in 1839.

Career

After a few years as a surveyor, McCrae joined the Victorian Government service, eventually becoming Deputy Registrar-General, and also a prominent figure in literary circles. Most of his leisure time was spent in writing. His first published work was Two Old Men's Tales of Love and War (London, 1865).

His son Hugh McCrae

Hugh McCrae

Hugh Raymond McCrae was an Australian writer.McCrae was born in Melbourne, the son of the Australian author George Gordon McCrae. He was originally articled to an architect, but later took upon writing and acting, settling eventually in Sydney and Camden...

, also a poet, produced a volume of memoirs (My Father and My Father's Friends) about George and his association with such literary figures as Henry Kendall

Henry Kendall (poet)

Thomas Henry Kendall was a nineteenth century Australian poet.-Biography:Kendall was born near Ulladulla, New South Wales. He was registered as Thomas Henry Kendall, but never appears to have used his first name. His three volumes of verse were all published under the name of "Henry Kendall". His...

, Adam Lindsay Gordon

Adam Lindsay Gordon

Adam Lindsay Gordon was an Australian poet, jockey and politician.- Early life :Gordon was born at Fayal in the Azores, son of Captain Adam Durnford Gordon who had married his first cousin, Harriet Gordon, both of whom were descended from Adam of Gordon of the ballad...

, Richard Henry Horne

Richard Henry Horne

Richard Hengist Horne was and English poet and critic most famous for his poem Orion.-Early life:...

 and Marcus Clarke

Marcus Clarke

Marcus Andrew Hislop Clarke was an Australian novelist and poet, best known for his novel For the Term of his Natural Life.- Biography :...

.

George McCrae wrote novel

Novel

A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....

s, stories, poetry

Poetry

Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...

, and travel sketches, and illustrated books. After his retirement, unpublished manuscripts entitled 'Reminiscences—Experiences not Exploits' contain detailed descriptions of events from his youth and present a record of the early European part of Melbourne country-side.

Late life

McCrae died 15 August 1927 at Hawthorn

Hawthorn, Victoria

Hawthorn is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Boroondara...

in Melbourne, survived by four of his six children, including Dorothy Frances Perry, also an author.

External links

• George Gordon McCrae contains some of his poems